The A-to-Z of Yeovil's History

by Bob Osborn

armorial achievement

armorial
achievement

Yeovil's
'Coat of Arms'

This achievement of arms was granted in 1954 to mark the centenary of Yeovil’s incorporation as a municipal borough and re-granted in 1985 following the town’s achieving parish status.

The main shield depicts Saint John the Baptist as shown on a fourteenth century town seal used by the town lord and his portreeve. The croziers represent the bishopric of Bath and Wells and the
Abbey and Convent of Syon whose abbess was town lord in the 15th and 16th centuries.

The crowns above them are for the Empress Matilda who placed the eleventh century ‘tenement’ of Yeovil under the protection of the parish church of Saint John; and for King John who granted Yeovil a
fairs and
markets charter in 1205.
The Saxon crown, which rests on a civic helm, betokens King Alfred the Great, owner of Kingston manor, while the flames it encompasses are indicative of devastating fires of medieval times. The bull, with golden horns and hooves, represents the agricultural and dairy industries - a reminder of the nature of livestock markets which contributed largely to the town’s growth - while the small shield bearing a golden glove is symbolic of Yeovil’s one-time staple industry.

The supporters are components found in the arms of former manorial lords - the
golden lion from the Earls of Arundel,
to whom the
Manor of
Hendford
descended from
the Maltravers
family, who held
the lordship
under William
the Conqueror, and the
golden horse from the Horseys
of Clifton
Maybank who had
the lordship of
the Manor of
Yeovil at the
time of the
Dissolution when
the Convent of
Syon, who owned
Yeovil at one
time, was
disbanded.

The shield borne
by the lion wear displays
the arms of Maltravers
(black fretted
with gold) and Whitemore
(green fretted
with gold) who
held the
lordship for a
year under James
I. The shield
borne by the
horse displays
the arms of Phelips of Montacute
who took over
the lordship
from the
Whitemore
family. The collars
of ,blue with
gold arrowheads
are elements from the arms of Harbin of Newton Surmaville.

The motto, Industria Virtute et Labore, translates as ‘By Dilgence, Courage and Work’, the initials of the Latin rendering spelling an early form of the town’s name - IVEL.

links to the major
themes

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